The Man in the High Castle is worth watching … not just as a reminder of the painful alternative history our nation narrowly averted, but as a reminder of the need for constant vigilance in our American present.

The Man in the High Castle provides precisely such a warning. Its central narrative – that of a small band of liberty-minded people fighting to reclaim their freedom from an oppressive government – ought to be at the forefront of everyone’s mind in modern day America.

Critically acclaimed and commercially successful, The Man in the High Castle is Amazon’s most-watched original series ever – although in a nation overflowing with easily-stoked outrage and hyper-sensitive political correctness, some have found it offensive.

Amazon debuted the pilot for The Man in the High Castle last January. A month later it ordered a full ten-episode season – which debuted last November. A second ten-episode season is set to premiere in December.

Based on the 1962 novel of the same name by Philip K. Dick, The Man in the High Castle assumes an Axis victory in World War II and a German/ Japanese occupation of the continental United States.

Title: The Man in the High Castle (2015– )

“The Man in the High Castle,” the audacious contender in the series category, similarly explores an alternate world, but from the wild mind of novelist Philip K. Dick, who turned the outcome of World War II upside down. In 1962 the country was occupied by both Nazi Germany and Japan. For cinematographer James Hawkinson, nominated for “The New World” pilot, the look was oppressively retro-futuristic using the RED camera, with the shadow of Big Brother constantly leaning over America.

Title Card for The Man in the High Castle

Season two, explained executive producer (and Dick's daughter) Isa Hackett, will involve meeting the mysterious Man in the High Castle and will continue to pull from its source material. "The narrative progression is different in the show than it is in the book," she said. "There's quite a bit of jumping around so there's still quite a bit to do." It’s a stark, interesting concept that writer and executive producer Frank Spotnitz (The X-Files) developed for television. David Semel directed the pilot, and no doubt both men and the set designers deserve high praise for what most viewers will be struck by immediately: the sprawling, dark and dreary setting where The Man in the High Castle takes place. New York, San Francisco and the neutral zone work as a stunning visual canvas to tell a story of oppressive living under dual dictatorial control. There is a decided lack of color to the series, dominated by saturated blacks, browns, greens and grays. Small touches of color in propaganda signs or the stark white of a cigarette are about the only things that break up the bleak, evocative palette. After many stunted attempts, beginning in 2006, to bring Philip K. Dick’s Hugo-winning novel The Man in the High Castle to television, the ambitious alternate history project about a world where the United States loses World War II found a home at Amazon.For instance, it’s 1962 but it’s not made clear if the dilapidated condition and outdated modes of transportation in the former States is done on purpose to keep occupied citizens down or if it's evidence of how little. There’s no indication that Germany or Japan has also decimated Canada or how the occupants of the middle area of the former U.S. lives. Part of the conceit requires trying to stay focused on San Francisco and New York — a location choice probably not related to budget concerns since The Man in the High Castle wasn’t a cheap production to start with. But after a while something seems off about the year and the conditions, though that’s a minor quibble.

The Man in the High Castle season 1 is available on Amazon Prime.

The Man in the High Castle is based on the work of acclaimed writer Philip K. Dick, whose science fiction novel was turned into and whose short story was adapted into . The Man in the High Castle marks the first time Dick’s work has been adapted for television. Amazon released 10 episodes for the acclaimed first season, and is now is readying an additional 10 for season 2.

The Man in the High Castle photo: David Berg/Amazon

Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Man in the High Castle.

Alexa Davalos in The Man in the High Castle

Would would have happened if Nazi Germany and Japan had won WWII? That's the premise of the Amazon series 'The Man in the High Castle.' One of its stars, Rupert Evans, talks about the show. (Feb. 9)